CN113348390B

CN113348390B - Optical connector module and method for manufacturing optical waveguide substrate

Info

Publication number: CN113348390B
Application number: CN202080010846.7A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 角田胜健; 铃木贵大; 东尾光章
Original assignee: Kyocera Corp
Current assignee: Kyocera Corp
Priority date: 2019-01-24
Filing date: 2020-01-17
Publication date: 2023-09-19
Anticipated expiration: 2040-01-17
Also published as: EP3916443A4; CN113348390A; US12019276B2; KR20240064025A; KR20210105974A; KR102662752B1; US20240302596A1; US20220082760A1; JP7138056B2; JP2020118870A; WO2020153276A1; EP3916443A1

Abstract

The optical connector module (1) of the present application comprises: an optical waveguide substrate (10); and an optical connector (20) mounted on the optical waveguide substrate (10), wherein the optical connector (20) has: a to-be-positioned portion (23) that engages with the optical waveguide substrate (10), wherein the optical connector (20) is positioned with respect to the optical waveguide substrate (10) in a state in which the to-be-positioned portion (23) engages with the optical waveguide substrate (10), and wherein the optical waveguide substrate (10) has: an optical waveguide (12), the optical waveguide (12) comprising: a first clad layer (122 a) that is laminated on the substrate (11) in a lamination direction orthogonal to the substrate (11); a core (121) laminated on the first cladding (122 a); and a positioning core (14) which is laminated on the first cladding (122 a) by using the same material as the core (121) and is engaged with the positioned portion (23), wherein the positioning core (14) protrudes in the lamination direction to the side opposite to the substrate (11) than the core (121).

Description

Optical connector module and method for manufacturing optical waveguide substrate

Cross-reference to related applications

The present application claims priority from japanese patent application publication No. 2019-010561, filed on 1 month 24 of 2019, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an optical connector module and a method for manufacturing an optical waveguide substrate.

Background

Conventionally, an optical connector module for optically coupling an optical waveguide included in an optical waveguide substrate with another optical transmission path is known. For example, patent document 1 discloses an optical connector module including an optical waveguide substrate having a positioning protrusion laminated on a lower clad of an optical waveguide in parallel with a core of the optical waveguide.

Prior art literature

Patent literature

Patent document 1: U.S. patent application publication 2009/0162004 (US, A1)

Disclosure of Invention

An optical connector module according to an embodiment of the present invention includes:

an optical waveguide substrate; and an optical connector mounted on the optical waveguide substrate, wherein,

the optical connector has:

a positioned portion engaged with the optical waveguide substrate,

the optical connector is positioned relative to the optical waveguide substrate in a state in which the positioned portion is engaged with the optical waveguide substrate,

the optical waveguide substrate includes:

an optical waveguide, the optical waveguide comprising: a first clad layer laminated on a substrate in a lamination direction orthogonal to the substrate, a core body laminated on the first clad layer; the method comprises the steps of,

A positioning core body laminated on the first cladding layer by using the same material as the core body and engaged with the positioned portion,

the positioning core protrudes further to the opposite side of the substrate than the core in the stacking direction.

A method for manufacturing an optical waveguide substrate according to an embodiment of the present invention is a method for manufacturing an optical waveguide substrate to which an optical connector is attached, including:

a first step of laminating a clad layer constituting an optical waveguide on a substrate in a lamination direction orthogonal to the substrate,

a second step of laminating a core constituting the optical waveguide and a positioning core, which is engaged with the positioned portion of the optical connector to position the optical connector with respect to the optical waveguide substrate, on the clad layer using the same material,

in the second step, the positioning core is formed so as to protrude further to the opposite side of the substrate than the core in the lamination direction.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing an optical connector module according to a first embodiment.

Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the optical connector module of fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing an optical waveguide substrate unit of fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view showing an optical connector unit of fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a front view of the optical connector module of fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged view of a portion surrounded by a chain line of fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view schematically enlarged when viewed from a front perspective showing a part of the optical connector module of fig. 1.

Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a method for manufacturing the optical waveguide substrate of fig. 2.

Fig. 9A is a schematic diagram illustrating a top view of a first modification of the optical waveguide substrate of fig. 2.

Fig. 9B is a schematic diagram illustrating a plan view of a second modification of the optical waveguide substrate of fig. 2.

Fig. 9C is a schematic diagram illustrating a top view of a third modification of the optical waveguide substrate of fig. 2.

Fig. 9D is a schematic diagram illustrating a top view of a fourth modification of the optical waveguide substrate of fig. 2.

Fig. 9E is a schematic diagram illustrating a top view of a fifth modification of the optical waveguide substrate of fig. 2.

Fig. 10A is a schematic diagram for explaining a front view of the first modification of the optical connector of fig. 6.

Fig. 10B is a schematic diagram for explaining a front view of a second modification of the optical connector of fig. 6.

Fig. 11A is a schematic diagram for explaining a third modification of the optical connector of fig. 6 when viewed from the front.

Fig. 11B is a schematic diagram for explaining a front view of a fourth modification of the optical connector of fig. 6.

Fig. 11C is a schematic diagram for explaining a fifth modification of the optical connector of fig. 6 when viewed from the front.

Fig. 12 is a perspective view showing an optical connector module according to a second embodiment.

Fig. 13 is an exploded perspective view of the optical connector module of fig. 12.

Fig. 14 is a perspective view showing an optical waveguide substrate single body of fig. 13.

Fig. 15 is a front view of the optical connector module of fig. 12.

Fig. 16 is an enlarged view of a portion surrounded by a chain line in fig. 15.

Fig. 17 is a cross-sectional view schematically enlarged when viewed from a front perspective showing a part of the optical connector module of fig. 12.

Fig. 18A is a schematic diagram showing a first modification of the positioning core in the optical waveguide substrate of fig. 13 in a plan view.

Fig. 18B is a schematic diagram showing a second modification of the positioning core in the optical waveguide substrate of fig. 13 in a plan view.

Fig. 18C is a schematic diagram showing a third modification of the positioning core in the optical waveguide substrate of fig. 13 in a plan view.

Detailed Description

In order to efficiently couple the optical waveguides with other optical transmission channels, it is often necessary to align the positions of each other with a micrometer accuracy. Therefore, the same accuracy is required for positioning between the optical connector of the optical connector module connected to the connector holding the other optical transmission path and the optical waveguide substrate. In the optical connector module including the optical waveguide substrate described in patent document 1, positioning accuracy between the optical connector and the optical waveguide substrate is insufficient.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an optical connector module and a method for manufacturing an optical waveguide substrate, each of which improves positioning accuracy between an optical connector and the optical waveguide substrate.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the front-back, left-right, and up-down directions are based on the directions of arrows in the drawings. The directions of the arrows match each other in the different figures.

As an example, the "stacking direction" used in the following description includes the up-down direction. As an example, the "extending direction of the core" includes the front-rear direction. As an example, the "direction orthogonal to the lamination direction" includes the left-right direction. As an example, the "side opposite to the substrate" includes an upper side.

(first embodiment)

A first embodiment of the present invention will be mainly described with reference to fig. 1 to 11C. Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing an optical connector module 1 according to a first embodiment. Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the optical connector module 1 of fig. 1. The optical connector module 1 has: an optical waveguide substrate 10; and an optical connector 20 mounted on the optical waveguide substrate 10.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing a single body of the optical waveguide substrate 10 of fig. 2. The structure of the optical waveguide substrate 10 of fig. 2 will be mainly described with reference to fig. 3.

The optical waveguide substrate 10 includes, for example: a substrate 11 composed of a rigid printed wiring substrate; and an optical waveguide 12 laminated on the upper surface of the substrate 11. The optical waveguide 12 is formed so as to protrude upward from the upper surface of the substrate 11, for example. For example, for optical coupling with the optical connector 20, the front end surface of the optical waveguide 12 is formed to coincide with the front end surface of the substrate 11. The front end surface of the optical waveguide 12 is formed in a planar shape along the front end surface of the substrate 11, for example. The waveguide mode of the optical waveguide 12 is, for example, a single mode. The waveguide mode of the optical waveguide 12 is not limited to this, and may be multimode. Hereinafter, the optical waveguide 12 is described as being formed on the upper surface of the substrate 11, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the optical waveguide 12 may be buried in the substrate 11. In this case, the front end surface of the optical waveguide 12 may be aligned with the front end surface of the substrate 11, and an end surface of a core 121 described later may be exposed from the substrate 11.

The optical waveguide 12 has: the core 121 and the cladding 122 are laminated on the substrate 11 in a lamination direction orthogonal to the substrate 11. More specifically, the optical waveguide 12 has: a first clad layer 122a laminated on the upper surface of the substrate 11; a core 121 laminated on the first cladding 122 a; and a second clad 122b surrounding the core 121 with sandwiching the core 121 in the lamination direction together with the first clad 122 a.

A plurality of cores 121 are formed so as to be separated from each other at predetermined intervals in the left-right direction. The core 121 and the cladding 122 are formed of a suitable material such as quartz glass. The refractive index of the core 121 is higher than that of the cladding 122. Hereinafter, the optical waveguide 12 is described as an example of an embedded optical waveguide, but is not limited thereto. The optical waveguide 12 may be a plate type optical waveguide, a half-buried optical waveguide, or the like, as appropriate.

The optical waveguide substrate 10 has a heat conductor 13 embedded in the substrate 11 along a positioning core 14 described later. More specifically, the heat conductor 13 is embedded in the substrate 11 over the entire width of the positioning core 14 in the front-rear-left-right direction. The heat conductor 13 is buried in the substrate 11 so as to be located directly below the positioning core 14 so as to be parallel to the positioning core 14 in the front-rear direction. The heat conductor 13 may be a single copper plate embedded in the substrate 11 directly below the positioning core 14, or may be a plurality of copper wires embedded in parallel to each other in the substrate 11 directly below the positioning core 14. The material constituting the heat conductor 13 is not limited to copper, and may be any material having high thermal conductivity.

The optical waveguide substrate 10 further includes: the positioning core 14 is laminated on the substrate 11 using the same material as the core 121. The positioning core 14 is laminated on the first cladding 122 a. The positioning cores 14 are formed in a pair so as to sandwich the optical waveguide 12 from the left-right direction, for example. The positioning core 14 is formed in parallel with the optical waveguide 12, for example, in the front-rear direction. The positioning core 14 is formed to extend a predetermined length in the front-rear direction, for example.

The positioning core 14 has: the narrow portion 141 constitutes a front half of the positioning core 14 and is formed in a rectangular shape in a plan view. The positioning core 14 has: the engaging portion 142 is formed continuously rearward from the narrow portion 141, and is formed in a trapezoid that gradually expands rearward from the front in a plan view. The positioning core 14 has: the wide portion 143 is formed continuously rearward from the engaging portion 142, and has a rectangular shape having a width in the lateral direction larger than that of the narrow portion 141 in a plan view.

The positioning core 14 and the core 121 are separated from the heat conductor 13. The distance between the positioning core 14 and the heat conductor 13 is smaller than the distance between the core 121 and the heat conductor 13. In the manufacturing process of the optical waveguide substrate 10 described later, the amount of heat based on the heat applied to the optical waveguide substrate 10 is affected by the distance from the heat conductor 13, and differs between the positioning core 14 and the core 121. More specifically, in comparing the amounts of heat received in the manufacturing processes of the positioning core 14 and the core 121, since the distance between the positioning core 14 and the heat conductor 13 is smaller than the distance between the core 121 and the heat conductor 13, the amount of heat in the positioning core 14 is also smaller than the amount of heat in the core 121. Thus, the temperature of the positioning core 14 has a tendency to be lower than the temperature of the core 121 under the same environment in the manufacturing process of the optical waveguide substrate 10.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view showing a single body of the optical connector 20 of fig. 2. The structure of the optical connector 20 of fig. 2 will be mainly described with reference to fig. 4.

The optical connector 20 is made of, for example, a light-transmitting resin material. As an example, the optical connector 20 is made of a material having a refractive index substantially equal to that of the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12. The optical connector 20 has an L-shape. The optical connector 20 has a first base 21 extending in the front-rear direction. The first base 21 has a recess 21b recessed one step inward from the central portion of the lower surface 21 a. The optical connector 20 has a second base 22 that protrudes forward of the first base 21 and is formed continuously with the first base 21. The second base 22 is formed so as to protrude downward from the first base 21. The optical connector 20 has a pair of through holes 22a penetrating from the front surface to the rear surface of the second base 22 and having a circular shape in cross section. The through holes 22a are formed in a pair at both left and right ends of the second base 22 so as to sandwich the concave portions 21b of the first base 21 in the left-right direction. The optical connector 20 has a recess 22b recessed one step inward from the front surface of the second base 22.

The optical connector 20 has a pair of to-be-positioned portions 23 formed on both left and right outer sides of the recess 21b so as to sandwich the recess 21b in the left-right direction on the lower surface 21a of the first base 21. As an example, the portion to be positioned 23 is a recess formed in a semicircular shape in cross section. The portion to be positioned 23 is formed continuously from the through hole 22a of the second base 22 to the rear end of the first base 21. The through hole 22a and the portion to be positioned 23 are formed concentrically with each other. The portion to be positioned 23 extends in the front-rear direction in parallel with the concave portion 21b.

The optical connector 20 has a pair of accommodating portions 24 formed on both left and right outer sides of the portion to be positioned 23 so as to sandwich the concave portion 21b and the portion to be positioned 23 in the left and right directions on the lower surface 21a of the first base 21. As an example, the accommodating portion 24 is a recess formed in a semicircular shape in cross section. The radius of the semicircle of the accommodation portion 24 in cross section is, for example, much smaller than the radius of the semicircle of the positioned portion 23 in cross section. The accommodation portion 24 is formed continuously from, for example, the front end to the rear end of the first base 21. The accommodating portion 24 extends, for example, along the extending direction of the core 121 orthogonal to the stacking direction. The accommodating portion 24 extends in the front-rear direction, for example, in parallel with the recess 21b and the positioned portion 23.

The optical connector 20 has a lens portion 25 provided on the front surface A1 of the recess 22 b. The lens portion 25 is constituted by a plurality of lenses 25a having a curvature. The number of lenses 25a constituting the lens portion 25 corresponds to the number of cores 121 of the optical waveguide 12.

The optical connector 20 is optically coupled to the optical waveguide 12 included in the optical waveguide substrate 10. More specifically, the second base 22 of the optical connector 20 transmits and guides light emitted from the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12 to the lens 25a, for example. The light passing through the lens 25a is emitted from the optical connector 20, and is coupled to another optical transmission path held by the connector connected to the optical connector 20. Conversely, the lens 25a of the second base 22 of the optical connector 20 transmits light emitted from the other light transmission path held by the connector connected to the optical connector 20. The light passing through the lens 25a is incident on the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12 through the second base 22.

As shown in fig. 1 and 2, the optical connector 20 is mounted on the optical waveguide 12 from above the optical waveguide substrate 10, for example. More specifically, the optical connector 20 is placed on the first cladding layer 122a by the lower surface 21a of the first base 21 being in contact with the upper surface of the first cladding layer 122a of the optical waveguide 12. At this time, the narrow portion 141 of the positioning core 14 is accommodated in the width of the portion 23 to be positioned of the optical connector 20 in the lateral direction. The optical connector 20 is slightly pushed rearward from this state, and the rear end portion of the positioned portion 23 is brought into contact with the engaging portion 142 of the positioning core 14. Thus, the positioning core 14 and the positioned portion 23 are engaged with each other.

The optical connector 20 is positioned with respect to the optical waveguide substrate 10 in a state where the positioned portion 23 is engaged with the positioning core 14. More specifically, the position of the optical connector 20 in the up-down direction with respect to the optical waveguide substrate 10 is determined based on the contact between the lower surface 21a of the first base 21 and the upper surface of the first cladding 122a of the optical waveguide 12. The position of the optical connector 20 in the front-rear-left-right direction with respect to the optical waveguide substrate 10 is determined based on the engagement between the portion to be positioned 23 of the first base 21 and the positioning core 14 of the optical waveguide substrate 10.

Fig. 5 is a front view of the optical connector module 1 of fig. 1. As shown in fig. 5, when the optical connector 20 is positioned with respect to the optical waveguide substrate 10, the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12 and the tip end portion of the second cladding 122b are accommodated in the recess 21b of the first base 21. The optical connector 20 is disposed in a state where the lower surface 21a of the first base 21 contacts the upper surface of the first cladding 122a to cover a part of the optical waveguide 12. The second base 22 is disposed so as to protrude forward from the front end surface of the substrate 11 and to protrude downward from the first base 21. The second base 22 protrudes with its lower surface positioned below the upper and lower positions of the optical waveguide 12 and above the lower surface of the substrate 11. The plurality of lenses 25a constituting the lens portion 25 formed on the second base 22 are opposed to the plurality of cores 121 constituting the optical waveguide 12, respectively.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged view of a portion surrounded by a chain line of fig. 5. As shown in fig. 6, the accommodating portion 24 of the optical connector 20 is formed along the substrate 11 on the outer side than the portion to be positioned 23 engaged with the positioning core 14. The first cladding 122a of the optical waveguide 12 is formed to be slightly narrower than the width of the lower surface 21a of the first base 21 of the optical connector 20 in the left-right direction. More specifically, the width of the first cladding 122a in the lateral direction is smaller than the interval between the pair of left and right accommodating portions 24 and larger than the interval between the pair of left and right portions to be positioned 23 engaged with the positioning core 14. Therefore, the left and right ends of the lower surface 21a including the pair of left and right accommodating portions 24 are opposed to the upper surface of the substrate 11 in a state separated from the upper surface of the substrate 11 without being in contact with the first cladding layer 122 a. The accommodating portion 24 formed on the lower surface 21a faces the substrate 11. A space S is formed between the upper surface of the substrate 11 and the left and right ends of the lower surface 21a including the pair of left and right accommodation portions 24, respectively.

Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view schematically enlarged when viewed from the front of a part of the optical connector module 1 of fig. 1. In fig. 7, the structural relationship between the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12 and the positioning core 14 is shown. As shown in fig. 7, in the optical connector module 1 of fig. 1, the positioning core 14 is laminated on the first clad 122a so as to have a larger volume than the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12. More specifically, the positioning core 14 is laminated on the first cladding 122a so that the vertical width is larger than the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12. The positioning core 14 protrudes in the stacking direction to the opposite side of the substrate 11 than the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12. Similarly, the positioning core 14 is laminated on the first clad 122a so that the lateral width is larger than the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12.

In the conventional method for manufacturing an optical waveguide substrate, when the core and the positioning core are formed by the same manufacturing process, these top end surfaces, i.e., the upper surfaces, are generally uniformly formed so as to have the same height. However, unlike the conventional knowledge of this prior art, the upper surface of the positioning core 14 of the optical connector module 1 of the first embodiment is formed so as to be located on the opposite side of the upper surface of the core 121 from the substrate 11 in the stacking direction.

The optical waveguide substrate 10 of the first embodiment is manufactured by, for example, photolithography. The manufacturing process described later is repeatedly performed in the order of the first cladding 122a, the core 121 and the positioning core 14, and the second cladding 122 b. The method of manufacturing the optical waveguide substrate 10 according to the first embodiment includes a first step of laminating the first clad layer 122a constituting the optical waveguide 12 on the substrate 11 in a lamination direction orthogonal to the substrate 11. The method of manufacturing the optical waveguide substrate 10 includes a second step of laminating the core 121 constituting the optical waveguide 12 and the positioning core 14 on the first clad 122a with the same material. The method of manufacturing the optical waveguide substrate 10 includes a third step of laminating the second clad layer 122b constituting the optical waveguide 12 together with the first clad layer 122a so as to sandwich the core 121 in the lamination direction.

In the method for manufacturing the optical waveguide substrate 10 according to the first embodiment, in the second step described above, the positioning core 14 is formed so as to protrude to the opposite side of the substrate 11 from the core 121 in the stacking direction. For example, in the second step described above, the core 121 and the positioning core 14 are formed by the same manufacturing process as each other. For example, in the predetermined manufacturing process in the second step described above, the exposure amounts of light irradiated to the core 121 and the positioning core 14 are different from each other. For example, when the photoresist liquid used for the photolithography is negative, the exposure amount of the light irradiated to the positioning core 14 may be larger than the exposure amount of the light irradiated to the core 121 in the predetermined manufacturing process in the second step described above. In this way, by adjusting the exposure amount of light irradiated in a predetermined manufacturing process between the positioning cores 14 and 121, the positioning cores 14 can be formed such that the height of the positioning cores 14 is greater than the height of the cores 121. The forming method of the positioning cores 14 and 121 is not limited thereto. For example, in the predetermined manufacturing process in the second step described above, the positioning cores 14 and the cores 121 are respectively laminated on the first clad layer 122a so that the amounts of heat based on the heat applied to them are different from each other.

Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a method for manufacturing the optical waveguide substrate 10 of fig. 2. Hereinafter, a method of forming the positioning core 14 of the optical connector module 1 according to the first embodiment will be described in more detail with reference to fig. 8. Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, a case will be described in which the first clad 122a is omitted and the core 121 and the positioning core 14 are laminated on the substrate 11. The same description applies to the formation of the cladding layer 122.

In the first process, pretreatment for cleaning the upper surface of the substrate 11 is performed.

In the second process, the photoresist liquid is discharged, and the photoresist liquid is uniformly applied on the entire upper surface of the substrate 11 by centrifugal force while the substrate 11 is rotated by, for example, a spin coater. Thereby, the core 121 constituting the optical waveguide 12 and the base of the positioning core 14 are uniformly formed. The film thickness forming method used in the second process is not limited to spin coating, and may be any method. For example, the film thickness forming method may be a bar coating method, a spray coating method, or the like. The heights of the core 121 and the positioning core 14 at the end of all the manufacturing processes are equal to or less than the corresponding partial heights of the photoresist liquid applied in the second process.

At the stage of ending the second process, the amount of the photoresist liquid on the outer periphery of the upper surface of the substrate 11 is large. Thus, in the third process, an edge rinse is performed in which the outer peripheral edge is wiped with a needle. Thus, the film thickness of the photoresist liquid becomes uniform as a whole.

In the fourth process, a prebaking is performed in which the whole is heated at a temperature of 90 to 120 ℃. Thereby, the photoresist liquid is slightly cured. At this time, the heat transferred to the positioning core 14 is smaller than the heat transferred to the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12 due to the heat conductor 13 buried in the substrate 11. For example, the temperature of the positioning core 14 is lower than the temperature of the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12 due to the heat conductor 13. The temperature of the core 121 is higher than the temperature of the positioning core 14, and thus the organic solvent such as the adhesive is more easily volatilized in the core 121 than in the positioning core 14. As a result, when all manufacturing processes are finished, the volume of the core 121 tends to be smaller than the volume of the positioning core 14. In the completed optical waveguide substrate 10, the positioning core 14 protrudes in the stacking direction to the opposite side of the substrate 11 than the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12.

In the fifth process, exposure is performed, that is, a mask is applied to a portion of the photoresist other than a portion to be remained as the core 121 and the positioning core 14 in the completed optical waveguide substrate 10 and ultraviolet rays are irradiated. Thus, only the portion of the photoresist irradiated with ultraviolet rays becomes harder. At this time, the exposure sensitizer mixed into the interior of the photoresist is cured depending on the exposure amount. The more the exposure amount, the more the chemical coupling inside the exposure sensitizer is caused by light, so that the corresponding photoresist portion is not removed and remains in the development described later. Therefore, the exposure amount of the ultraviolet rays irradiated to the positioning core 14 is made larger than the exposure amount of the ultraviolet rays irradiated to the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12. Thus, alignment core 14 is cured more strongly than core 121 of optical waveguide 12 and is more difficult to remove during development. As a result, in the completed optical waveguide substrate 10, the positioning core 14 protrudes in the stacking direction to the opposite side of the substrate 11 from the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12. The method of adjusting the exposure amount may be, for example, a method of adjusting the amount of light by attaching an ultraviolet filter only in front of the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12 to reduce the amount of light of ultraviolet rays. The method of adjusting the exposure amount may be, for example, a method of adjusting the exposure time by making the exposure time of the ultraviolet light irradiated to the positioning core 14 longer.

In the sixth process, a post-exposure bake (PEB) heated entirely at a temperature of 50 to 90 ℃ may be performed. Thereby, the irregularities on the side surface of the photoresist portion irradiated with ultraviolet rays in the fifth process are smoothed. The PEB in the sixth process may be omitted if not necessary.

In the seventh process, development is performed using a developer in which a portion of the photoresist other than the portion to remain as the core 121 and the positioning core 14 in the completed optical waveguide substrate 10 is removed. The adjustment between the positioning cores 14 and 121 indicated by the fifth process described above is reflected by the development, and the height of the cores 121 is smaller than the height of the positioning cores 14.

In the eighth process, post baking is performed with the whole heated in a drying furnace. Thus, the photoresist portion remaining as the core 121 and the positioning core 14 becomes harder, and is in close contact with the substrate 11.

According to the method for manufacturing the optical connector module 1 and the optical waveguide substrate 10 of the first embodiment described above, the positioning accuracy between the optical connector 20 and the optical waveguide substrate 10 is improved. More specifically, the positioning core 14 of the optical waveguide substrate 10 protrudes further to the opposite side of the substrate 11 than the core 121, and the protruding amount of the positioning core 14 becomes larger. This ensures more reliable engagement between the positioning core 14 and the positioned portion 23 of the optical connector 20. For example, when the waveguide mode of the optical waveguide 12 is a single mode, the vertical width of the core 121 is about 10 μm or less, and is very small. In this case, if the positioning core 14 is formed to have the same vertical width as the core 121 in the same manufacturing process as in the conventional art, the positioning core 14 and the portion 23 to be positioned may not engage with each other, and the position of the optical connector 20 may be shifted. By making the protruding amount of the positioning core 14 larger, the sensitivity of the optical connector 20 at the time of positioning with respect to the optical waveguide substrate 10 is improved, and such positional displacement can be suppressed. Since the formation of the positioning core 14 and the core 121 is completed in the same manufacturing process, an increase in cost can also be suppressed.

By stacking the positioning core 14 on the first clad 122a, the positioning core 14 can be stacked on the stacked surface of the first clad 122a that is smoother than the stacked surface of the substrate 11. Thus, the positioning core 14 can be formed with higher accuracy.

By making the exposure amounts of light irradiated to the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12 and the positioning core 14 different from each other, the curing degree of the exposure sensitizer mixed into the inside of the photoresist can be adjusted to be different from each other. For example, by making the exposure amount of light irradiated to the positioning core 14 larger than the exposure amount of light irradiated to the core 121, the positioning core 14 can be cured stronger than the core 121, and is more difficult to remove in development.

By making the distance between the positioning core 14 and the heat conductor 13 smaller than the distance between the core 121 and the heat conductor 13, the temperature of the positioning core 14 is lower than the temperature of the core 121 with respect to the temperature caused by the heat applied to the whole in the manufacturing process of the optical waveguide substrate 10. Therefore, since the amount of volatilization of the organic solvent in the positioning core 14 becomes smaller, as a result, the positioning core 14 can be formed to protrude further upward than the core 121.

The accommodating portion 24 of the optical connector 20 is formed along the substrate 11 at a position further outside than the portion to be positioned 23. Thus, for example, after positioning the optical connector 20 on the optical waveguide substrate 10, even when the optical connector 20 is fixed to the optical waveguide substrate 10 by applying the adhesive to both the left and right side surfaces of the optical connector 20, the inflow of the adhesive to the positioned portion 23 can be suppressed.

For example, the adhesive flows from the outside to the inside along the space S between the optical connector 20 and the substrate 11 by capillary phenomenon. If the accommodating portion 24 is not formed on the lower surface 21a of the optical connector 20, there is also a possibility that the adhesive flows into the portion to be positioned 23 due to capillary phenomenon. If the adhesive flows into the portion to be positioned 23, the portion to be positioned 23 does not smoothly engage with the positioning core 14, and there is a possibility that the optical connector 20 may shift in position with respect to the optical waveguide substrate 10.

The accommodating portion 24 accommodates the adhesive flowing from the outside to the inside, and also suppresses the adhesive from reaching the positioned portion 23 formed on the inside. Therefore, the accommodating portion 24 can suppress positional displacement of the optical connector 20 due to the above-described adhesive.

In the optical connector 20, the accommodating portion 24 is formed on the lower surface 21a opposed to the substrate 11 and extends in the front-rear direction, so that the adhesive can be restrained from flowing inward in the front-rear width in which the accommodating portion 24 is formed. Therefore, the accommodating portion 24 can more effectively suppress the positional displacement of the optical connector 20 due to the adhesive as described above.

The accommodating portion 24 can suppress not only inflow of the adhesive into the optical connector 20 but also diffusion of the adhesive to the outside of the optical connector 20. Thus, for example, even if the plurality of optical waveguides 12 are formed at relatively narrow intervals on the optical waveguide substrate 10, when the optical connectors 20 are fixed to the respective optical waveguides 12 by the adhesive, the possibility of interference of the adhesives applied to the adjacent optical connectors 20 can be reduced.

Fig. 9A is a schematic diagram illustrating a top view of a first modification of the optical waveguide substrate 10 of fig. 2. In the first embodiment, the first cladding 122a is formed to have a width narrower than the interval between the pair of right and left accommodating portions 24 of the optical connector 20, but is not limited thereto. The optical connector module 1 may have any structure in which a space S is formed below both right and left end portions of the lower surface 21a of the optical connector 20 including the accommodating portion 24.

For example, as shown in fig. 9A, the first cladding 122a may be laminated on the entire substrate 11, and the first cladding 122a may be removed in the vicinity of each of the right and left end portions of the optical connector 20 including the lower surface 21a of the accommodating portion 24, thereby forming the space S. In fig. 9A, the region A2 from which the first cladding 122a is removed is, for example, rectangular, and is formed to have a width in the front-rear direction wider than the front-rear width of the first base 21 of the optical connector 20.

Fig. 9B is a schematic diagram illustrating a plan view of a second modification of the optical waveguide substrate 10 of fig. 2. Fig. 9B shows only the shape of the region A2 on the right side of fig. 9A. In fig. 9B, the area A2 is, for example, rectangular in shape, and is formed to be narrower in width in the front-rear direction than the front-rear width of the first base 21 of the optical connector 20.

Fig. 9C is a schematic diagram illustrating a top view of a third modification of the optical waveguide substrate 10 of fig. 2. In fig. 9C, only the shape of the region A2 on the right side of fig. 9A is shown. In fig. 9C, the area A2 is, for example, a convex shape in which the edge of the tip is rounded. The region A2 may be formed to have a width in the front-rear direction wider than the front-rear width of the first base 21 of the optical connector 20, or may be formed to have a width in the front-rear direction narrower than the front-rear width of the first base 21 of the optical connector 20.

Fig. 9D is a schematic diagram illustrating a top view of a fourth modification of the optical waveguide substrate 10 of fig. 2. Fig. 9D shows only the shape of the region A2 on the right side of fig. 9A. In fig. 9D, the area A2 is, for example, a trapezoid whose front-rear width expands from the outside to the inside. The region A2 may be formed to have a width in the front-rear direction wider than the width of the first base 21 of the optical connector 20, or may be formed to have a width in the front-rear direction narrower than the front-rear width of the first base 21 of the optical connector 20.

Fig. 9E is a schematic diagram illustrating a top view of a fifth modification of the optical waveguide substrate 10 of fig. 2. Fig. 9E shows only the shape of the region A2 on the right side of fig. 9A. In fig. 9E, the area A2 is, for example, a trapezoid whose front-rear width is narrowed from the outside to the inside. The region A2 may be formed to have a width in the front-rear direction wider than the width of the first base 21 of the optical connector 20, or may be formed to have a width in the front-rear direction narrower than the front-rear width of the first base 21 of the optical connector 20.

Fig. 10A is a schematic diagram for explaining a front view of a first modification of the optical connector 20 of fig. 6. Fig. 10A shows the shape of the right side surface of the first base 21. In fig. 10A, the left and right side surfaces of the first base 21 of the optical connector 20 have inclined surfaces that are inclined inward as going downward with the substantially central portion in the up-down direction as a starting point.

Fig. 10B is a schematic diagram for explaining a front view of a second modification of the optical connector 20 of fig. 6. Fig. 10B shows the shape of the right side surface of the first base 21. In fig. 10B, the left and right side surfaces of the first base 21 of the optical connector 20 have inclined surfaces that start from the upper portion and incline inward as going downward.

Fig. 11A is a schematic diagram for explaining a front view of a third modification of the optical connector 20 of fig. 6. Fig. 11A shows a shape near the right end portion of the lower surface 21A including the accommodating portion 24. In fig. 11A, the accommodating portion 24 is formed in a rectangular shape in cross section.

Fig. 11B is a schematic diagram for explaining a front view of a fourth modification of the optical connector 20 of fig. 6. Fig. 11B shows a shape near the right end portion of the lower surface 21a including the accommodating portion 24. In fig. 11B, the lower surface 21a protrudes downward by one step inside the accommodating portion 24. At this time, the accommodating portion 24 may not be opposed to the upper surface of the substrate 11 but may be opposed to the upper surface of the first cladding layer 122 a. A space S may also be formed between the corresponding portion of the lower surface 21a and the first cladding 122 a.

Fig. 11C is a schematic diagram for explaining a fifth modification of the optical connector 20 of fig. 6 when viewed from the front. Fig. 11C shows a shape near the right end of the lower surface 21 a. In fig. 11C, the optical connector 20 does not have the accommodating portion 24, and the lower surface 21a of the optical connector 20 has an inclined surface inclined inward as facing downward.

In the first embodiment, the accommodating portion 24 is described as continuously extending from the front end to the rear end of the first base 21, but is not limited thereto. The accommodating portion 24 may be formed at an arbitrary position on the outer side of the portion to be positioned 23 as one or a plurality of concave portions extending in a predetermined length within the front-rear width of the first base portion 21.

In the first embodiment, the case where the accommodating portion 24 is a concave portion has been described, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The accommodating portion 24 may have any structure capable of accommodating the adhesive applied to the optical connector 20. The housing 24 may be formed of a through hole, for example.

In the first embodiment, the case where the portion to be positioned 23 is a concave portion has been described, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The portion to be positioned 23 may have any structure that can be engaged with the positioning core 14. For example, the portion to be positioned 23 may be formed of a through hole.

In the first embodiment, the case where the core 121 and the positioning core 14 of the optical waveguide 12 are formed by the same manufacturing process has been described, but the present invention is not limited thereto. Core 121 and positioning core 14 of optical waveguide 12 may also be formed by different manufacturing processes. For example, in the exposure in the fifth process described above, the mask for positioning the core 14 may be used to irradiate ultraviolet rays only to the positioning core 14 first, and then the mask for the core 121 may be used to irradiate ultraviolet rays only to the core 121.

At this time, in the case where the curing of the exposure sensitizer is slowly performed with the lapse of time, by first irradiating the positioning core 14 with ultraviolet rays, the curing time of the positioning core 14 becomes longer than the curing time of the core 121. Thus, the alignment core 14 is cured more firmly than the core 121 and is more difficult to remove during development. In this way, the height adjustment between the positioning core 14 and the core 121 can also be performed based on the difference in curing time.

In the first embodiment, the case where the photoresist liquid used for the photolithography is negative is described, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The photoresist solution may be positive type. At this time, for example, the height of the core 121 after development may be reduced by slightly irradiating the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12 with ultraviolet light only while the exposure amount of light irradiated to the positioning core 14 is kept at zero.

In the first embodiment, the case where the heat conductor 13 is embedded in the substrate 11 along the positioning core 14 has been described, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The heat conductor 13 may be disposed at a position opposite to the positioning core 14 on a lower surface opposite to the upper surface of the substrate 11 on which the positioning core 14 is formed. Thereby, heat in the vicinity of the positioning core 14 is released to the outside of the substrate 11 via the heat conductor 13, and the temperature of the positioning core 14 is reduced more effectively than the temperature of the core 121.

In the first embodiment, the case where the heat radiation effect in the vicinity of the positioning core 14 is improved by the heat conductor 13, and the temperature of the positioning core 14 is lower than the temperature of the core 121 has been described, but the present invention is not limited thereto. Instead of or in addition to the structure in which the heat conductor 13 is embedded in the substrate 11 along the positioning core 14, the optical connector module 1 may have a structure in which a heat insulator which is difficult to pass through is embedded in the substrate 11 along the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12.

In the first embodiment, the case where the clad layer 122 has the first clad layer 122a and the second clad layer 122b has been described, but the present invention is not limited thereto. If the function as the optical waveguide 12 can be sufficiently achieved by forming the prescribed waveguide mode with the core 121 and the first cladding 122a of the optical waveguide 12 using an air layer in place of the second cladding 122b, the cladding 122 may not have the second cladding 122b.

(second embodiment)

A second embodiment of the present invention will be mainly described with reference to fig. 12 to 18C. Fig. 12 is a perspective view showing an optical connector module 1 according to the second embodiment. Fig. 13 is an exploded perspective view of the optical connector module 1 of fig. 12. Fig. 14 is a perspective view showing a single body of the optical waveguide substrate 10 of fig. 13. Fig. 15 is a front view of the optical connector module 1 of fig. 12. Fig. 16 is an enlarged view of a portion surrounded by a chain line in fig. 15. Fig. 17 is a cross-sectional view schematically enlarged when viewed from the front of a part of the optical connector module 1 of fig. 12.

Fig. 12 to 17 correspond to fig. 1 to 3 and fig. 5 to 7, respectively, in the first embodiment. In the optical connector module 1 of the second embodiment, the shape of the positioning core 14 is different from that of the first embodiment. The description of other structures, functions, effects, modifications, and the like is also applicable to the optical connector module 1 of the second embodiment, as is the case with the first embodiment. Hereinafter, the same components as those of the first embodiment will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted. The differences from the first embodiment will be mainly described

In the second embodiment, the upper surface of the positioning core 14 of the optical waveguide substrate 10 may be located at the same vertical position as the upper surface of the core 121 of the optical waveguide 12, or may be located at a different vertical position. For example, as in the first embodiment, the upper surface of the positioning core 14 is further above the upper surface of the core 121. Referring to fig. 14, the positioning core 14 of the optical connector module 1 of the second embodiment has cutout portions 144 that are linearly cutout in the entire front-rear direction at 2 locations. For example, the pair of notch portions 144 are formed at positions that are line-symmetrical with respect to the center line of the positioning core 14 in the lateral direction.

Referring to fig. 15 and 16, the through hole 22a of the optical connector 20 faces the positioning core 14 in the extending direction of the core 121 orthogonal to the stacking direction, and the end face of the positioning core 14 can be observed along the extending direction of the core 121. Referring to fig. 17, the positioning core 14 has four reference planes A3, A4, A5, and A6 appearing through a pair of cut-out portions 144. The reference surfaces A3, A4, A5, and A6 are formed as inner surfaces in the left-right direction of the positioning core 14, which are different from outer surfaces in the left-right direction of the positioning core 14.

For example, when the positioning core 14 is viewed from the through hole 22a along the extending direction of the core 121, the pair of reference surfaces A3 and A6 are separated from each other in a direction orthogonal to the stacking direction in a state where the positioning core 14 is not present, and extend in the stacking direction. The pair of reference surfaces A3 and A6 are opposed to each other in a direction orthogonal to the extending direction and the stacking direction of the core 121. Two cutout portions 144 are formed between the pair of reference surfaces A3 and A6. Similarly, when the positioning core 14 is viewed from the through hole 22a along the extending direction of the core 121, the pair of reference surfaces A4 and A5 are separated from each other in the direction orthogonal to the stacking direction and extend in the stacking direction. One of the two cutout portions 144 is formed between the pair of reference surfaces A3 and A4, and the other is formed between the pair of reference surfaces A5 and A6.

When the positioning core 14 is viewed from the through-hole 22a along the extending direction of the core 121, each pair of reference surfaces is formed at positions that are line-symmetrical to each other with respect to the center line L of the through-hole 22a parallel to the stacking direction. Each pair of reference surfaces extends from the lamination surface on which the first clad 122a of the positioning core 14 is laminated. More specifically, the notch 144 is notched to the upper surface of the first cladding layer 122a over the entire vertical width of the positioning core 14, and the lower ends of the pair of reference surfaces are disposed at the same vertical position as the upper surface of the first cladding layer 122 a.

According to the optical connector module 1 of the second embodiment described above, the positioning accuracy between the optical connector 20 and the optical waveguide substrate 10 is improved. For example, in the positioning core 14 of the first embodiment having no cutout 144 and not having the reference surfaces, even if the positioning core 14 is to be observed from the front by a measuring device or the like, the vertical width of the positioning core 14 may be too small relative to the diameter of the through hole 22a, and may not be in focus. In the optical connector module 1 of the second embodiment, by forming the pair of reference surfaces, even if the positioning core 14 is viewed from the through hole 22a along the extending direction of the core 121, the interval between the pair of reference surfaces can be accurately measured.

By defining the interval between the pair of reference surfaces, the positional relationship between the through hole 22a and the positioning core 14 can be grasped in the main view. This makes it possible to easily measure the positional displacement between the positioning core 14 and the through hole 22a in each direction and each rotation direction. The positional displacement of the optical connector 20 and the optical waveguide substrate 10 can be easily measured. More specifically, in the front view, if the pair of reference surfaces are shifted in parallel in the left-right direction in the through hole 22a, the optical connector 20 and the optical waveguide substrate 10 can be considered to be shifted in the left-right direction by the measuring device, the operator, and the like. In the front view, if the pair of reference surfaces are offset in parallel in the vertical direction in the through hole 22a, the optical connector 20 and the optical waveguide substrate 10 can be considered to be offset in the vertical direction by a measuring device, an operator, or the like. In the front view, if the pair of reference surfaces are not in focus, the optical connector 20 and the optical waveguide substrate 10 can be considered to be shifted in the front-rear direction by the measuring device, the operator, and the like. In the front view, if the observed shape of the positioning core 14 changes from the shape when accurately positioned or if the observed shape of the positioning core 14 differs between the left and right through holes 22a, the optical connector 20 can be considered to be displaced from the optical waveguide substrate 10 by rotation about at least one of the front-rear direction, the left-right direction, and the up-down direction by a measuring device, an operator, or the like.

By being able to easily measure the positional displacement of the optical connector 20 and the optical waveguide substrate 10, positioning of the optical connector 20 with respect to the optical waveguide substrate 10 becomes easy. In addition, the accuracy of positioning is improved. For example, in the related art, after the optical connector and the optical waveguide substrate are positioned substantially and the other optical transmission path is connected to the optical connector, the optical transmission path and the optical waveguide substrate are positioned so that the coupling loss of light is minimized while the intensity of the output light is monitored by propagating the light to the optical waveguide substrate and the other optical transmission path. In this case, the positioning operation takes a lot of time. In the optical connector module 1 of the second embodiment, the optical connector 20 can be positioned with respect to the optical waveguide substrate 10 even if light is not transmitted. For example, the optical connector 20 may be positioned directly with respect to the optical waveguide substrate 10 while observing the images of the positioning core 14 and the through hole 22 a.

The pair of reference surfaces are formed at positions that are line-symmetrical with respect to the center line L of the through hole 22a, so that the position of the center line L of the through hole 22a can be compared with the positions of the pair of reference surfaces to grasp the positional relationship with each other. This makes it possible to easily measure the positional displacement between the positioning core 14 and the through hole 22a in each direction and each rotation direction. The positional displacement of the optical connector 20 and the optical waveguide substrate 10 can be easily measured.

By extending the pair of reference surfaces from the laminated surface of the first clad layer 122a, the vertical width of each reference surface becomes larger, and the visibility of each reference surface improves. This enables the positional displacement of the optical connector 20 and the optical waveguide substrate 10 to be measured with higher accuracy.

The reference surfaces are formed as inner surfaces in the lateral direction of the positioning core 14, which are different from outer surfaces in the lateral direction of the positioning core 14, so that the positioned portion 23 and the reference surfaces do not come into contact with each other even when the positioned portion 23 of the optical connector 20 engages with the positioning core 14. Therefore, the reference surfaces are not damaged by the positioning portions 23, and the smoothness of the reference surfaces is maintained. Thereby, observability of each reference surface is maintained, and positioning accuracy of the optical connector 20 with respect to the optical waveguide substrate 10 is maintained.

In the second embodiment, the description has been made of the case where the pair of reference surfaces are formed at the positions that are line-symmetrical with respect to the center line L of the through hole 22a, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The pair of reference surfaces may not be line-symmetrical to each other with respect to the center line L of the through hole 22 a.

In the second embodiment, the case where four reference surfaces A3, A4, A5, and A6 are formed is described, but the number of reference surfaces is not limited thereto. The positioning core 14 may have any number of reference surfaces as long as it has at least one pair of reference surfaces separated from each other in the left-right direction in a state where the positioning core 14 is not present.

In the second embodiment, the case where the pair of reference surfaces extend from the lamination surface on which the first clad layer 122a of the positioning core 14 is laminated has been described, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the notch 144 may be cut to a middle of the positioning core 14 across a part of the positioning core 14 in the up-down direction, and a pair of reference surfaces may be formed with an up-down width corresponding to the part of the positioning core in the up-down direction.

For example, in fig. 17, the cross-sectional shape of each protruding portion of the positioning core 14 formed by the cutout portion 144 is rectangular, but is not limited thereto. The cross-sectional shape of each protruding portion may be any shape. For example, the cross-sectional shape of each protruding portion may be semicircular. The cross-sectional shapes of the respective protruding portions may be the same or different from each other.

For example, in fig. 17, the projections of the positioning core 14 formed by the cutout portions 144 are all the same height, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The heights of the protrusions may be different from each other.

Fig. 18A is a schematic diagram showing a first modification of the positioning core 14 in the optical waveguide substrate 10 of fig. 13 in a plan view. For example, the positioning core 14 may be formed in the shape shown in fig. 18A. For example, in the positioning core 14, the front end surface of the central protruding portion may be located further rearward than the front end surfaces of the protruding portions on the left and right sides. The central protruding portion may extend rearward continuously in parallel with the protruding portions on the left and right sides.

Fig. 18B is a schematic diagram showing a plan view of a second modification of the positioning core 14 in the optical waveguide substrate 10 of fig. 13. For example, the positioning core 14 may be formed in the shape shown in fig. 18B. For example, in the positioning core 14, the front end surface of the central protruding portion may be located further rearward than the front end surfaces of the protruding portions on the left and right sides. The central protruding portion may extend a predetermined length in the front-rear direction in the positioning core 14.

Fig. 18C is a schematic diagram showing a top view of a third modification of the positioning core 14 in the optical waveguide substrate 10 of fig. 13. For example, the positioning core 14 may be formed in the shape shown in fig. 18C. For example, in the positioning core 14, the front end surface of the central protruding portion may be located further forward than the front end surfaces of the protruding portions on the left and right sides.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the present invention can be embodied in other specific forms than those described above without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. Accordingly, the foregoing description is illustrative and not limiting. The scope of the invention is defined not by the foregoing description but by the appended claims. All of the modifications within the scope of their equivalents are encompassed by

For example, the shape, arrangement, orientation, number, and the like of the above-described respective constituent parts are not limited to those illustrated in the above description and drawings. The shape, arrangement, orientation, number, and the like of the respective constituent parts may be arbitrarily configured as long as the functions thereof can be realized.

For example, the steps in the above-described method for manufacturing the optical waveguide substrate 10, the functions included in the manufacturing processes, and the like may be rearranged so as not to physically contradict each other, and a plurality of steps or a plurality of manufacturing processes may be combined into one or divided.

Description of the reference numerals:

1. optical connector module

10. Optical waveguide substrate

11. Substrate board

12. Optical waveguide

121. Core body

122. Cladding layer

122a first cladding layer

122b second cladding layer

13. Heat conductor

14. Positioning core

141. Narrow width part

142. Engagement portion

143. Wide width part

144. Cut-out part

20. Optical connector

21. A first base

21a lower surface

21b recess

22. A second base

22a through hole

22b recess

23. Positioned part

24. Housing part

25. Lens part

25a lens

A1 Front face

A2 Region(s)

A3, A4, A5 and A6 datum planes

L center line

S-gap

Claims

1. An optical connector module having an optical waveguide substrate and an optical connector mounted on the optical waveguide substrate,

The optical connector has:

a positioned portion engaged with the optical waveguide substrate,

the optical waveguide substrate includes:

an optical waveguide having: a first clad layer laminated on a substrate in a lamination direction orthogonal to the substrate; a core laminated on the first cladding; and

the positioning core protrudes further to the opposite side of the substrate than the core in the stacking direction,

the section of the positioned part is semicircular,

the positioning core body is provided with:

a narrow portion which is accommodated in the portion to be positioned in a plan view;

a wide portion located outside the portion to be positioned in a plan view, the wide portion being wider than the narrow portion;

and an engagement portion that is formed continuously from the narrow portion to the wide portion so as to gradually expand in width, and that is in contact with an end portion of the portion to be positioned.

2. The optical connector module of claim 1, wherein,

the optical waveguide has: a second clad layer that sandwiches the core together with the first clad layer in the lamination direction so as to surround the core.

3. The optical connector module according to claim 1 or 2, wherein,

the optical waveguide substrate includes: a heat conductor embedded in the substrate along the positioning core,

the distance between the positioning core body and the heat conductor is smaller than the distance between the core body and the heat conductor.

4. The optical connector module according to claim 1 or 2, wherein,

the optical connector has: a through hole facing the positioning core in an extending direction of the core orthogonal to the stacking direction, the through hole being capable of observing an end face of the positioning core along the extending direction,

the positioning core has a pair of reference surfaces extending in the stacking direction,

when the positioning core is viewed from the through hole along the extending direction, the pair of reference surfaces face each other with a notch therebetween in a direction orthogonal to the extending direction and the stacking direction.

5. The optical connector module of claim 4, wherein,

the pair of reference surfaces are formed at positions that are mutually line-symmetrical with respect to a center line of the through hole parallel to the stacking direction when the positioning core is viewed from the through hole along the extending direction.

6. The optical connector module of claim 4, wherein,

the pair of reference surfaces extends from a lamination surface of the first clad on which the positioning core is laminated.

7. The optical connector module according to claim 1 or 2, wherein,

the optical connector has: a receiving portion formed along the substrate at a position outside the portion to be positioned,

the accommodating portion is formed in the optical connector on a surface opposing the substrate and extends along an extending direction of the core body orthogonal to the stacking direction.

8. A method of manufacturing an optical waveguide substrate for mounting an optical connector, comprising:

a second step of laminating a core constituting the optical waveguide and a positioning core engaged with the positioned portion of the optical connector to position the optical connector with respect to the optical waveguide substrate on the clad layer by using the same material,

in the second step, the positioning core is formed so as to protrude further toward the opposite side of the substrate than the core in the lamination direction,

The section of the positioned part is semicircular,

the positioning core body is provided with:

9. The method for manufacturing an optical waveguide substrate according to claim 8, wherein,

in the second step, the core and the positioning core are formed by the same manufacturing process as each other.

10. The method for manufacturing an optical waveguide substrate according to claim 8 or 9, wherein,

in the predetermined manufacturing process in the second step, the exposure amounts of light irradiated to the core and the positioning core are different from each other.

11. The method for manufacturing an optical waveguide substrate according to claim 10, wherein,

in the predetermined manufacturing process in the second step, the exposure amount of the light irradiated to the positioning core is larger than the exposure amount of the light irradiated to the core.

12. The method for manufacturing an optical waveguide substrate according to claim 8 or 9, wherein,

In the prescribed manufacturing process in the second step, regarding the temperature based on the heat transferred to the positioning core and the core, the temperature of the positioning core is lower than the temperature of the core.